“We are probably slightly ahead of where I thought we would be,” said Phillips, who joined the WRU in 2015.
“I know there is a lot of attention on performance on the pitch, and that’s got to be a factor, but that’s not where my focus goes, it’s on the foundations and getting the right things in place.
“We have got a board in place that we are pleased with and are delighted with David and the enthusiasm and energy that he has brought.
“The board have a strategy in place now and a very good commercial plan that I have seen in the last few weeks. From a business and commercial perspective we are in very good hands.
“The first thing for a coach is always the player roster and some easy and some not so easy decisions to be made,” he said.
“Bernard has not shirked that and has grasped the nettle. It’s outside my area of expertise, but he has put a lot of energy into that and there will be quite a different squad for next year.
“My job is looking at whether in three to five years something will work, and if I look at a match by match situation I will get lured into the wrong thing.
“Of course, it would have been nice to win a couple more games and next year that will be needed.
“But right from the outset we said it would take three to five years to get something moving with solid foundations.
“I am not interested in short-term wins and throwing money at it; we have been very disciplined.
“They have to get better but we need to be patient as well and let’s not think they are going to be vying for the title next year.”
